Halakhah for Berakhot 30:2
לא ס"ד דקתני חרש דומיא דשוטה וקטן מה שוטה וקטן דיעבד נמי לא אף חרש דיעבד נמי לא
This cannot enter thy mind ; because the Mishnah refers to a deaf person exactly as to the mentally defective and minor ; and therefore, as in the case of a mentally defective and minor even post factum [the reading of the Megillah] is invalid, so also if a deaf person has read it, it is likewise invalid.
Peninei Halakhah, Women's Prayer
In addition to kavana, one must pronounce the words of Shema precisely, taking care not to slur any letter, harden soft sounds, or soften hard ones. Therefore, le-khatḥila, one should distinguish between an alef and an ayin, a khaf and a ḥet, a kamatz and a pataḥ, and a tzeirei and a segol (SA 61:14-23). The Sages say, “If one recites Shema and is careful to pronounce its letters exactly, Hell is cooled for him” (Berakhot 15b). Be-di’avad, if she did not recite Shema meticulously, she nevertheless fulfilled her obligation as long as she did not miss a word or a full syllable (SA 62:1; MB 1).
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